and many more benefits!

Find us on Facebook

GMAT Club Timer Informer

Hi GMATClubber!

Thank you for using the timer!
We noticed you are actually not timing your practice. Click the START button first next time you use the timer.
There are many benefits to timing your practice, including:

Hide Tags

Show Tags

29 Apr 2008, 07:35

terp06 wrote:

I am feeling a lot of pressure to apply to Columbia ED. The employment reports are astounding - They consistently place over 100 students into IB/M&A year after year, even in years like 2002 and 2003 and they have no problems sharing this history with you. They place over 50% of their class generally (class of 500+) into the Financial Services industry.

I am just having a difficult time giving up the chance of admission at Chicago or Wharton, which are higher on my list, to apply to Columbia ED. I'm sure this is a common dilemna. Does anyone have any thoughts on it?

I'm not a big fan of the Columbia ED system. I've heard 50% of the matriculating class comes from the ED pool. It is very financially binding if you get accepted ED ($6000 up front payment before you even hear from other schools). CBS has been and always will be a financial powerhouse because of its Wall St network and its location.

Show Tags

29 Apr 2008, 07:48

sonibubu wrote:

terp06 wrote:

I am feeling a lot of pressure to apply to Columbia ED. The employment reports are astounding - They consistently place over 100 students into IB/M&A year after year, even in years like 2002 and 2003 and they have no problems sharing this history with you. They place over 50% of their class generally (class of 500+) into the Financial Services industry.

I am just having a difficult time giving up the chance of admission at Chicago or Wharton, which are higher on my list, to apply to Columbia ED. I'm sure this is a common dilemna. Does anyone have any thoughts on it?

I'm not a big fan of the Columbia ED system. I've heard 50% of the matriculating class comes from the ED pool. It is very financially binding if you get accepted ED ($6000 up front payment before you even hear from other schools). CBS has been and always will be a financial powerhouse because of its Wall St network and its location.

Yes, it's a very stressful system. On one hand, I have the expected increase in applications/competitiveness of admission pushing me towards trying to "lock in Columbia", and on the other hand, I know that I'd rather spend 2 years at Chicago or Wharton and that they would get me the same or better jobs.

Show Tags

29 Apr 2008, 07:53

Program: MBA FTArea of interest Post MBA: IB (career switcher), Strategy Consulting GMAT: 710 - pondering over whether to give it againGPA: 3.8 undergrad, Double degree - one in Economics and the other in Information Systems (Major GPA's both 3.9+)School: Private school, ranked around 100 (but habitually in top 5 for Information Systems)Work experience(WE): 3 years at matriculation. Consulting in Strategy and Information Security, etc Big4 ConsultingNationality: Indian - lived alll over the world Age: 26 at matriculationGender: MaleExtra-curriculars/community: A whole host of things in University - Founding president of Cultural Diversity Club (principal author of constitution), Revived Cricket Club from having its status revoked due to financial impropriety to captaining it to 2 intercollegiate trophies in 2005. Also received 'Sports Club of the Year Award in 2005' - this may sound trivial but believe me, it continues to be my most satisfying achievement in college and source of constant joy. Also led student run University Budgetary committee which doled out USD1MN+ (one of the few such structures for an UG institution in the USA) - fought a lot of tough battles and learnt a lot thereKicker - I have fallen asleep at the wheel post university - need to get back on track with EC's pronto.
_________________

Show Tags

29 Apr 2008, 09:56

Everyone's concerns about ED are not unfounded. ED is only for applicants who have decided that Columbia is their first choice. If you have researched schools and have discovered that everything that Columbia offers fits with who you are and what you want to be then the rolling and early aspects of Columbia's ED round can be really appealing. This is how I saw it, hence I applied ED. If you like Columbia, but it might be your 2+ choice, or it is neck and neck with your first choice, then you are better off going RD. RD might be more competitive, but we're talking about 2 years of your life that could plot the course for the rest of your life. Don't go for Columbia ED just to get the application process over with quicker, do it because Columbia is where you want to go for business school.

Show Tags

29 Apr 2008, 10:02

djhouse81 wrote:

Everyone's concerns about ED are not unfounded. ED is only for applicants who have decided that Columbia is their first choice. If you have researched schools and have discovered that everything that Columbia offers fits with who you are and what you want to be then the rolling and early aspects of Columbia's ED round can be really appealing. This is how I saw it, hence I applied ED. If you like Columbia, but it might be your 2+ choice, or it is neck and neck with your first choice, then you are better off going RD. RD might be more competitive, but we're talking about 2 years of your life that could plot the course for the rest of your life. Don't go for Columbia ED just to get the application process over with quicker, do it because Columbia is where you want to go for business school.

For what reasons do people choose Columbia over Harvard, Stanford, Wharton, or Chicago? Is it purely based on proximity to Wall Street and the location in New York City, or are there other things that go into this decision as well?
_________________

Show Tags

29 Apr 2008, 11:51

djhouse81 wrote:

terp06 wrote:

djhouse81 wrote:

Everyone's concerns about ED are not unfounded. ED is only for applicants who have decided that Columbia is their first choice. If you have researched schools and have discovered that everything that Columbia offers fits with who you are and what you want to be then the rolling and early aspects of Columbia's ED round can be really appealing. This is how I saw it, hence I applied ED. If you like Columbia, but it might be your 2+ choice, or it is neck and neck with your first choice, then you are better off going RD. RD might be more competitive, but we're talking about 2 years of your life that could plot the course for the rest of your life. Don't go for Columbia ED just to get the application process over with quicker, do it because Columbia is where you want to go for business school.

For what reasons do people choose Columbia over Harvard, Stanford, Wharton, or Chicago? Is it purely based on proximity to Wall Street and the location in New York City, or are there other things that go into this decision as well?

There's a lot of reasons why students to choose Columbia over the other schools you named. I'll name a few:1) location, both NYC and Wall Street2) Finance3) Consulting (McKinsey LOVES!!! Columbia)4) Particular alumni show the quality of the school: Buffet, Kravis, Mario Gabelli, Vikram Pandit5) Students - I never visited the other schools, but I felt an instant connection with the Columbia students; plus, they have the Hermes Society and Peer Advisors, which are groups of current students whose sole responsibility is to welcome prospective and accepted students6) Value Investing Program7) Renowned faculty, such as Bruce Greenwold and even the former Chair of the Council of Economic Advisors who is now our current Dean8) Real Estate Program - NYC real estate is a great case in itself for a real estate program9) Healthcare and Pharma Mgmt Program - one of the best for MBA's10) A Private Equity focus11) An international nexus as far as MBA programs go, as well as U.S. cities12) New core curriculum13) An incredible pre-MBA "World Tour" initiated and facilitated by '10's (there's a 14-week itinerary, website, and leaders for each leg, talk about initiative...incredible!!!)14) Yield - Columbia's is 17%, very presitigious15) Ivy League (ok, Harvard and Wharton have that)16) Plus Columbia has everything that top-tier programs should have, such as short and long abroad programs, a focus on entrepreneurship, every club under the sun, intramurals, class groups and teams, happy-hours, student-organized shows, a cohesive class of students, excellent job placement, great compensation packages upon graduation17) I could go on and on and on...

Every school has its strength. If you want to work out West, at Google, or Silicon Valley, then Stanford and Haas would be better than Columbia. If you want a very different leariing experience, then Ross might be your best bet with their MAP program or Darden's case study system. No matter where you go amongst the top schools, you'll be able to write your ticket. If you come from Columbia, Wharton, Harvard, Chicago, or Stanford, I'll hire any of you in a heartbeat--assuming I can afford you! So you are better off just finding where your ideals fit the school's ideals, and go from there.

Many of these things seem to be present at Chicago or Harvard. I guess what I'm really wondering is - how did you decide that you didn't want Chicago or Harvard? The above present a very good case for why you wanted Columbia, but to sacrifice your chances at every other school and apply ED is a big step. I suppose that it could just be a fit thing.
_________________

Show Tags

I'm not going to go through every single bullet point, but I thought I'd share my thoughts on a couple of these:

1) location, both NYC and Wall StreetFACT: Harvard and Wharton are not in or near New York City. They do not provide the same level of access to hedge funds, money managersm and private equity firms. This is very clear in the placement reports. A 20 person hedge fund isn't taking a trip to Chicago to recruit somebody. They're hopping on the A line to 116th.

2) FinanceFACT: Columbia's wins both in terms of # of classes and also because of the Master Classes taught by REAL Wall Street professionals. I don't want to read a case on how to run a distressed debt hedge fund. I want to meet a Wall Street Pro in his/her office (a couple of the value investing courses are taught on site!) and have him telling me about his strategy and what his firm actually does to execute their strategy.

5) StudentsI feel the same way as dj. I visited Columbia two weeks ago. Huge difference in character quality between Harvard and Chicago (in particular Harvard). If you don't notice a difference, that's unfortunate, because the difference is pretty clear and stark in my opinion. I'm not saying anything bad about H or C, just stating I believe there is a clear difference, and my personality preferences strongly favor Columbia.

6) Value Investing ProgramNo other school comes close on this one. If you don't believe me, you need to do some more research on this.

Show Tags

29 Apr 2008, 12:22

Terp you need to also remember not everyone gets into all their schools. In fact only nervousgmat clean sweeps tons of top schools. I mean Terry got into Stanford but not HBS. So someone might apply to Chicago/Columbia/Wharton/HBS and only get into one that makes an easy decision. Also some people are realistic about their chances, I know chances of me getting into Stanford were so slim that I decided not to waste the $$ and effort to apply.
_________________

Kellogg Class of 2010...still active and willing to help. However, I do not do profile reviews, don't offer predictions on chances and am far to busy to review essays, so save the energy of writing me a PM seeking help for these. If I don't respond to a PM that is not one of the previously mentioned trash can destined messages, please don't take it personally I get so many messages I have a hard to responding to most. The more interesting, compelling, or humorous you message the more likely I am to respond. GMAT Club Premium Membership - big benefits and savings

Show Tags

29 Apr 2008, 12:38

You will see what I mean when you research and visit schools, or at the very least interact with them and the students. For example, when you travel to NY, you realize that a Goldman Sachs Senior Manager can call you up for dinner and to discuss job opportunities, and you can be right there! But, then you may see that NYC is just too bustling for you. Then, you go to visit Harvard, and you instantly love the city! To you, being in Cambridge and having to travel a little further for recruiting trumps living in Goldman Sach's backyard and having to live in NYC. It's all a matter of fit, and the unique aspects of Columbia (do more research if you think that the criteria that I listed is not unique to Columbia) fit with me more so than the unique aspects of other schools.

Show Tags

If you come from Columbia, Wharton, Harvard, Chicago, or Stanford, I'll hire any of you in a heartbeat--assuming I can afford you!

Dj- does that mean you wont hire me?

Dosa, I'll write up a contract now if I know that I can secure you come graduation time! I was just using those schools because terp mentioned them, but I would be lucky to have anyone of this forum work for me! Most likely it will be the other way around because I am not starting a business anytime soon.

Show Tags

04 May 2008, 02:06

djhouse81 wrote:

terp06 wrote:

djhouse81 wrote:

Everyone's concerns about ED are not unfounded. ED is only for applicants who have decided that Columbia is their first choice. If you have researched schools and have discovered that everything that Columbia offers fits with who you are and what you want to be then the rolling and early aspects of Columbia's ED round can be really appealing. This is how I saw it, hence I applied ED. If you like Columbia, but it might be your 2+ choice, or it is neck and neck with your first choice, then you are better off going RD. RD might be more competitive, but we're talking about 2 years of your life that could plot the course for the rest of your life. Don't go for Columbia ED just to get the application process over with quicker, do it because Columbia is where you want to go for business school.

For what reasons do people choose Columbia over Harvard, Stanford, Wharton, or Chicago? Is it purely based on proximity to Wall Street and the location in New York City, or are there other things that go into this decision as well?

There's a lot of reasons why students to choose Columbia over the other schools you named. I'll name a few:1) location, both NYC and Wall Street2) Finance3) Consulting (McKinsey LOVES!!! Columbia)4) Particular alumni show the quality of the school: Buffet, Kravis, Mario Gabelli, Vikram Pandit5) Students - I never visited the other schools, but I felt an instant connection with the Columbia students; plus, they have the Hermes Society and Peer Advisors, which are groups of current students whose sole responsibility is to welcome prospective and accepted students6) Value Investing Program7) Renowned faculty, such as Bruce Greenwold and even the former Chair of the Council of Economic Advisors who is now our current Dean8) Real Estate Program - NYC real estate is a great case in itself for a real estate program9) Healthcare and Pharma Mgmt Program - one of the best for MBA's10) A Private Equity focus11) An international nexus as far as MBA programs go, as well as U.S. cities12) New core curriculum13) An incredible pre-MBA "World Tour" initiated and facilitated by '10's (there's a 14-week itinerary, website, and leaders for each leg, talk about initiative...incredible!!!)14) Yield - Columbia's is 17%, very presitigious15) Ivy League (ok, Harvard and Wharton have that)16) Plus Columbia has everything that top-tier programs should have, such as short and long abroad programs, a focus on entrepreneurship, every club under the sun, intramurals, class groups and teams, happy-hours, student-organized shows, a cohesive class of students, excellent job placement, great compensation packages upon graduation17) I could go on and on and on...

Every school has its strength. If you want to work out West, at Google, or Silicon Valley, then Stanford and Haas would be better than Columbia. If you want a very different leariing experience, then Ross might be your best bet with their MAP program or Darden's case study system. No matter where you go amongst the top schools, you'll be able to write your ticket. If you come from Columbia, Wharton, Harvard, Chicago, or Stanford, I'll hire any of you in a heartbeat--assuming I can afford you! So you are better off just finding where your ideals fit the school's ideals, and go from there.

Great post!I also interest in PM you soon to be advised about Columbia!Thanks
_________________

Show Tags

04 May 2008, 07:26

Hi Everyone,

I am so excited to apply to Columbia. After I visited I just really fell in love with it. I have visited all the schools on my primary list, and decided that Columbia and I have the most spark (maybe fireworks in this case) I'm so glad that I found this thread. We'll help each other for the final victory. YaY! Thank you djhouse for staying around to advising us newcomers.

Program: MBA FTArea of interest Post MBA: IB (career switcher)GMAT: 760GPA: >3.5 BSEE & MSEE School: one of the top 5 engineering schoolWork experience(WE): 4 years at matriculation. Software - Quantitative Finance (reputable company) Nationality: Chinese AmericanAge: 26 at matriculationGender: FemaleExtra-curriculars:leadership in college alumni local chapter and high school north America chapter (I went to high school oversea), tutoring and mentoring middle school students, column writer for local Chinese School newspaper

Show Tags

09 May 2008, 06:17

happybunny wrote:

Has anyone thought about the 2nd question on J-term's essay topics? experiencing on closing the gap between theory and practice?

It seems pretty straightforward. Think back about a time in your life, either personal or professional (I'd lean towards the latter if possible) in which you learned a good lesson. This would be a type of lesson that you couldn't learn through a textbook or wikipedia. That's the whole point of the Master Classes - to learn from industry experts (i.e., people who are actively involved in their fields and doing hands on work.) If I want to understand how a real estate professional actually makes an investment decision, it's one thing to read through a case study, but it's another to look at current deals that somebody is actually deciding between and the process and methodology that he/she is going through.

Show Tags

For some reason, Columbia is catching my eye the last few days. I have a question for those who have or are planning to apply to Columbia:

How do you plan out the rest of your application strategy if you choose to apply to Columbia ED?

I take it that most people want to submit their Columbia ED application in August or September. Given that it will take about 10 weeks for them to review your application, interview you, and make a decision - do you apply to other schools in Round 1?

What should your Round 1 strategy be if you are applying to Columbia ED?